Open and Shut

Two long posts yesterday and yet here I am again....  Do you folks know how good you have it?

We begin with Fescuegate.  Despite all reports to the contrary, this issue is not in Rover Mueller's scope....  Yet.

Erin Hills fescue: Just how difficult will it be?

It won't be the least bit difficult if they stay the heck out of it....

ERIN, Wisc. — The fescue at Erin Hills would always be a popular topic; this much we knew, as it covers the overwhelming majority of the 652 acres here in rural Wisconsin.

 

But before U.S. Open week even began, before fans could walk through the gates and traipse the hilly kettle moraine course, Kevin Na was out there sharing the scoop: THE FESCUE IS UNFAIR! You can check out his full rant below, where he went so far as to call for former U.S. Open champions to join together and present a better setup. (Sorry, that will never happen.) This came just a week after fellow pro Adam Scott made an early plea for the USGA to drop its yearly goal of an even-par champion.

OK, so there will be blood:

BRUTALITY AWAITS...

What Na showed off is definitely common at Erin Hills, but it was a patch of the thickest fescue the course will offer. Those patches exist on every hole, and while they don't dominate every fescue area, they are brutal enough to ruin a round.

Is there a "but" coming?

BUT IT VARIES!

Two-time U.S. Open champ Andy North said it best Monday during his press conference: "Kevin Na gave us insight on what the fescue is like in places." Those last two words should be kept close to mind: in places. The fescue is thick and then it is thin, and then it is thick again and then thin again.

From another report comes this reminder of the width of the fairways:

Because, in truth, the fairways are some of the widest runways in golf. 

Hell, Phil Mickelson could land his private jet on the No. 1 with room to spare come Thursday evening. As Na briefly alluded to, there's only 5-to-10 yards of rough between the short stuff and fescue, but it fails to convey this generous amount of landing strips before that comes in play. 

And while we're here, the rough itself is shockingly sparse in many spots. Not to say it's anything like your local muni. Conversely, compared to the Oakmonts and Merions of the Open rota, finding yourself in the rough is not a penalty at Erin Hills.

 That could save him fifteen minutes if he gets that 4-hour delay on Thursday...

But, back to our subject please:

However, you came here for the fescue, and dammit, we're going to give you fescue.

In many cases, Na was correct: your object would vanish just steps off the rough. At one point, I lost the freaking bottle on the left side of No. 2:

I cannot properly convey the embarrassment that comes in such a moment. Especially when I felt Jordan Spieth's caddie Michael Greller staring, wondering what the **** I was doing. 

So forget taking full swings or advancing your shot. Finding a ball when it departs into this green labyrinth counts as a victory.

But here's the kicker: all the fescue doesn't have this composition. It's mostly just the first six-to-eight yards. Once you travel past that barrier, it's a relative walk in the park.

I've long said that the key to this game is ensuring that your bad shots are really bad....  those moderately bad shots always end badly.

So, why is this always the case, that the worst lies are just off the fairway?  Anyone?  Bueller?  No Ferris, but we have Shack:

I can't fault Kevin Na entirely for his rant about the Erin Hills natives. The fescue grasses are beautifully managed throughout a property that is pretty stunningly maintained. The grasses are sparse where they'd naturally be thin and more dense where water collects. 

So to see the native grasses clearly receiving fairway irrigation overspray is not generally a shocker. We see it all too often on prairie courses. But the decision not to manage (trim) these crucial areas just off the primary cut is a risky one given how severe they are (to the point of the natives leaning over). A herd of goats or some refined thinning practices could have alienated what will be a potential lost ball issue.

That said, Na's suggestion that players should be handling setup is a frightening one!

I suppose overspray is an appropriate term, it just implies more culpability than I might.  Most fairways are slightly crowned to avoid the puddling of  water, so that irrigating the course naturally pushes fertilizer and pesticides into the area closest to the fairway.  

Lastly, on this subject, I completely missed that the Swede was being quite literal, an impressive feat in his second language:

Henrik Stenson's advice for U.S. Open: take your medicine

No, really:

From what he’s gathered so far, though, he knows he’ll need to take his medicine at this week’s U.S. Open – and in more ways than one. 

“This is hay fever heaven,” Stenson said during his U.S. Open press conference on Monday, “and I expect any local pharmacy to sell out of antihistamines. If you haven’t gotten yours, make sure you get them quickly. I will.” 

Stenson said he forgot to take his pills Monday morning and as a result sneezed “about 50 times” before he met with the media. He wasn’t alone. Many other players battled allergies on Monday.

Anyone know how we check the field for allergies? 

More Mike, as in Davis, this time with Mike Bamberger:

On U.S. Open qualifying, which this year whittled down 8,979 applicants to roughly 70 spots earned through local and sectional qualifying. 

Praying, Mike?  Praytell, for what?

"One of the neatest things about this time of year is the qualifying process for the U.S. Open. That Steve Stricker, at 50, from Wisconsin, is playing in the 36-hole sectional qualifier. [Stricker was the medalist in his section, in Memphis.] That Rich Tock, from Erin Hills, is. He's in his mid-60s. He's old enough to be a grandfather to some of the players he'll be playing with. We used to give the head pro of the host club an exemption right into the Open. Now you get an exemption into the sectional. This guy loves golf and has played at a high level." [Tock shot a first-round 80 and withdrew.]

OK, just don't get cocky....

On getting beyond Chambers Bay and Oakmont. 

"When you look back at those two, I get it. People came away upset. We're coming off two in a row where we got a little black-and-blue. But when you look back at the Chambers Bay Open, you had great drama. You had Jordan Spieth and Dustin Johnson. Then at Oakmont, you could not have had worse weather. For Dustin Johnson, for what he was put through and then for him to do what he did, that was awesome. We've learned from those events. And we've made changes to make sure nothing like that happens again.

"We really need a good U.S. Open. But that doesn't mean we're going to get it. Going to a new course, there's more risk. We don't have experience. But that doesn't mean we shouldn't try."

I especially love that passive construction as relates to DJ....  Any chance we'll find the guys that did that to him?

This bear repeating as often as possible:

On the nature of Erin Hills. 

"It might look like a links, but it's not. Well, by definition it's not a links because it's not on the water. But it's not even links-like. It's an aerial course. Erin Hills has about 12 holes where you've got to fly the ball on the green.

"The fairways are wide. Much wider than what people are accustomed to seeing at a U.S. Open—40 to 60 yards. Sometimes wider than that. If somebody misses the 10th fairway, we ought to disqualify them, it's so wide. But you need wide fairways there in order to be fair to the players, because of the wind. 

"You get off the fairway, there's a transition area, with rough three, maybe four inches long. Beyond that you have the long fescue rough, which tends to be wispy. You're going to find your ball, but getting your clubhead through it will not be easy."

On that last bit, Kevin Na respectfully disagrees..... He didn't find his ball or his water bottle....

But the larger point, that it does not play like a links, is important.  The course will be played through the air, so pure ball-striking will be at a premium if there's any wind.

Anybody sporting new sticks?  Well, there was this:

Bubba Watson spotted with new Ping G400 driver at Erin Hills

They're up to 400?  Makes my still functional G30 a museum piece, no?  But the look of the new driver might not suit anyone not named Peter Parker:

How about flat sticks:

Rory McIlroy debuting new TaylorMade Spider Tour Red putter at Erin Hills

If there's any top-level player that can seemingly benefit from changing to a mallet, it's our Rors... I've never seen a guy miss so many short putts so badly.

By the way, we've been so focused on Phil's travel plans that we missed another guy that will show up late, for an equally good reason:

DJ's going to be late, and with good reason

No, Dustin Johnson is not getting last-second work on his back. Dustin and his fiancée,

Paulina Gretzky, are expecting the birth of their second child late Sunday or early Monday. According to a source close to Johnson, he won't be at Erin Hills until Tuesday at the earliest. 

But unlike the Na betting sheets, keep your Johnson wagers intact. The reigning U.S. Open champ visited Erin Hills last week after the Memorial for a handful of practice rounds. 

“He really liked the course and feels like it sets up beautifully for his game,” David Winkle, Johnson’s agent, told Brian Wacker. “He feels good about the venue and the state of his game.” 

Got to admit, that trophy would make a kickass milk bottle for his newborn.

That "after the Memorial" is a bit of a howler, as his Memorial ended on Friday...  But that now looks like good planning.

The place should be perfect for him, though he hasn't shown much form after his Masters mishap.

Shack does his by now obligatory merchandise tent thing here, and perhaps the concept simply isn't ageing well, as this is about the most notable:

An epson salt Cheesehead Bubba Duck.  A steal at $14.

These Scotty Cameron headcovers are pretty cool, though they're not for civilains:

What?  You think I made that up?

Damn hypocrites!  How come they're not screaming about the evils of bifurcation here....

Now the meat-centric concession stand sounds like it's right up my alley:

Item No. 4: Bratwurst Burger 

I called my fiancée and told her, in case anything happens, I love her with all my heart, tears sliding down my cheek. Or perhaps that was the meat sweats. Frankly, I lost

sensory touch after the cheese curds. 

You got to tip your hat to the locals. Clearly the “Is a hot dog a sandwich?” debate struck a nerve and, deeming the brat under attack, Wisconsin defended its honor by constructing it in patty form. And, hand to God…it was delicious. (And yes, it had cheese on it.) Cheddar headgear aside, these people are an astute bunch. 

Unfortunately, I put myself on the opposite end of the intelligence spectrum, as it began to dawn that digesting such a feast in 90-degree heat might have adverse health effects. I don’t want to exaggerate and claim I was in a coma, but I’m pretty sure I saw my dead grandpa in a brief 30-second blackness.

However, I'd suggest you steer clear of the cheese curd burger..... Some things are just wrong.

Alex Myers also covers familiar turf, with his favorite prop bets, including this one that save me a trip to Accu-weather:

Phil Mickelson will play in the U.S. Open (10/1)

I didn't think there was any shot for Phil to make his first-round tee time after attending his daughter's high school graduation in Calif., but look at this updated weather forecast for Thursday:

Yeah, Alex, there's a chance....Just not much of one.

So, who do you like?  I'm the '62 Mets of fantasy golf (or should that be the 2017 Mets?), so I'll not burden you with my thoughts on the subject.

Shack shares his Top Ten players to watch, and it's mostly, you know, the top ten players....  About his only foray into the great unknown is this guy:

8. Billy Horschel 

OWGR: 48 

Best U.S. Open finish: T-4 (2013) 

Last three U.S. Opens: T-23, T-25, T-32 

This year: After four missed cuts, came out of nowhere to win the AT&T Byron Nelson in a playoff over Jason Day. 

Why he could win: An elite ballstriker when he’s on, Horschel sounds like he’s found something that could fuel one of his patented hot streaks. His wife, Brittany, went public with an alcoholism battle that has been a burden on the Horschel family, and the outpouring of support can only help. 

Holding him back: His recovery play around the greens. He’s barely in the top 200 on the PGA Tour, and if Erin Hills becomes a scrambling contest, he’s got no shot.

Hmmmm...perhaps this will come across as needlessly harsh, but the biggest thing holding back Billy Horschel is that he's, you know, Billy Horschel.  He's 48th in the world, after a win, for a reason....

 Golf Digest had a slideshow of Nine sneaky picks, though it starts with Rickie, the antithesis of sneaky in all regards.  It's hard to sneak up on folks in bright orange, after all.

The picks do get sneakier, though on the probability scale you might find them wanting:

Shane Lowry 

The Irishman’s T-2 finish last year at Oakmont was his second straight top-10 in the event. There was disappointment that he was unable to hold the 54-hole lead, but optimism that the learning experience will propel him the next time he’s in contention in a big event. It didn’t happen at Augusta (MC, one of just two in 11 PGA Tour starts this season), but that could change this coming week in Wisconsin.

He didn't play well on Sunday at Oakmont, but I could see him playing well on this track, especially if the wind is up.

This one is pretty funny, given subsequent events:

Kevin Na

Na, T-12 in 2014 at Pinehurst and T-7 a year ago at Oakmont, is another golfer with a tidy U.S. Open resume, having made the cut in his last four starts. He had to WD from the Players after two holes due to illness and hasn’t finished better than T-39 in a PGA Tour stroke-play event since February. If he can block out a few negative thoughts, though, Na’s development and maturity could make a difference.

Negative thoughts?  You mean like these?

All I can to this next one, is Egads!

Pat Perez 

It’s been since 2008 that Perez last played in the U.S. Open, a statistical oddity that is as intriguing as it is unusual. Two missed cuts in four previous starts won’t knock your socks off, but the 41-year-old is having his best ever season on tour, with just one missed cut (and one WD) in 18 starts, 11 top-25 finishes and five top-10s. We’ll take momentum over experience.

Not now, not ever....